November 6,1996
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Sports
South Brunswick and West
Brunswick meet Friday to
decide 3A playoff slot ~ 1C
SOUTHPORT, N.C.
VOLUME 66/ NUMBER 11
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Page 2
Voters favor return to four-year terms
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
Four-year, staggered terms of office ruled Election Day of 1996. :
In separate referenda Tuesday night: 58.25 percent of a heavy turnout Of
voters in Brunswick County cast their ballots for a return to the four-year
term of office for county commissioners and school board members; 52 per
cent of the 2,077 voters of Long Beach who cast ballots said they wanted
town council members elected to staggered terms of four years.
Election totals, page 8-9
The return to four-year, staggered terms of office marks the end of an
experiment with two-year terms begun as the result of ballot initiatives of
1?92. County commissioners, sensing a change in voter sentiment, ordered
th£question of office terms put to referendum again this year. The four-year
term .was supported by resolutions of botti the county’s Democratic and
Republican parties and by all those seeking election and reelection to the
boards of county commissioners and education.
In Long Beach, where term of office has been a hot-button issue, town
council members in March exercised their option to order a town charter
amendment, returning to four-year staggered terms of office. Tuesday’s bal
loting, initiated by the petitions of citizens who disagreed, was in essence a
referendum on Long Beach Town Council’s decision.
“I think this vote puts the issue to rest,” Long Beach mayor Joan Altman
See Four-year, page 8
Incumbents
retain four
board seats
By Holly Edwards
Feature Editor
Although all five seats on the
Brunswick County Board of
Education were up for grabs, voters
returned four incumbents for a sec
ond term.
Several incumbents said they
viewed the election as a vote of con
fidence from the public.
£ ‘Tonight is the night I got my
grade. This is the night I got my
— report card,” said incumbent Bud:
v^QmtLj.'lJx>pe over the past two
years I made a lot of decisions and 1
made good decisions. 1 had a good
two years and I'm ready for two
more good years now that the peo
ple of Brunswick County have seen
fit to reelect me.”
Thorsen (12,109) soundly defeat
ed challenger Rozell. Hewett
(9,236), incumbent Billy Carter
(11,298) topped challenger David
Buchman (9,661), board vice-chair
man Glenda Browning (11,389) sur
passed challenger Julia Wood
(9,399), and incumbent Pat Brown
See Schools, page 8
Photo by Jim Harper
Ihe crew of the 105-foot schooner America prepares to get underway
from Southport Marina Monday after a weekend of rest and repairs.
The vessel, built along the lines of the 19th century schooner which gave
its name to the America’s Cup, encountered heavy weather Saturday
and found shelter in the harbor.
Democrats
gain control
in tight races
By Terry Pope
County Editor
The former chairman of the
Brunswick County Board of
Commissioners, Don Warren of
Shallotte, narrowly won his old seat
back Tuesday as Democrats
regained control of county govern
ment following a heavy day of vot
ing, with 59 percent of the regis
tered 39,579 residents casting bal
lots.
Warren was ousted two years ago
by Douglas Simmons of Calabash,
but he tallied 50.69 percent of the
vote to win by just 297 of the 21,417
votes cast for the District 1 seat,
totaling 10,857 to 10,560 for the
incumbent. He joins Democrats
JoAnn Bellamy Simmons of Ash,
District 4, and Bill Sue of Leland,
District 5. Ms. Bellamy faced no
opposition while Sue won handily
over Republican David Bright of
Leland, 11,919 to 9,072.
Republican Leslie Collier of Long
Beach, District 3, was reelected
over her challenger, Wayland
See County, page 8
Mistrial is declared
after jury deadlock
Defendant says close-range
shotgun slaying accidental
By Terry Pope
County Editor
After deliberating for two days, a Brunswick County Superior Court jury
told judge D. Jack Hooks Jr. it remained hopelessly deadlocked, 7-5, over
the fate of 15-year-old Harold Vemard Greene Jr. of Leland.
Greene is charged with first-degree murder in the March 5 shooting death
of North Brunswick High School student Mark Wescott Jr., who was shot in
the face with a shotgun inside Greene’s parents’ home on Cedar Hill Road.
Judge Hooks declared a mistrial and released the jury, which deliberated
Forecast
The extended forecast calls for partly
cloudy skies with a chance of rain
Thursday through Saturday, 'tempera
tures will be 65 to 70 each and falling
into the 50’s at night.
INSIDE . ■
Obituaries v,... 14
Church .... 4B
Schools .,..SB
TV schedule«>«•
District Court ..7C
for four hours last Wednesday after
noon and most of the day Thursday
before it returned to the courtroom
and declared it could not reach an
unanimous verdict.
T\vo alternate jurors released from
duty when deliberations began told
news reporters they would have
voted guilty for first-degree murder
when considering all of the evi
dence. The jury was given the
option of finding Greene guilty of
first-degree murder, second-degree
murder or a voluntary manslaughter
charge or rule not guilty on any
charge.
Prosecutors Lee Bollinger and
Rick Green haven’t decided
whether to retry the state’s case
against Greene. It would be placed
back on the court agenda and heard
in Brunswick County Superior
Court sometime after the first of the
year, said Bollinger.
In closing arguments last week,
See Mistrial, page 6
Lone-range committee
Goals progress is criticized
By Terry Pope
County Editor
County government isn’t moving fast enough
on recommendations to please a long-range
planning group that has developed a plan to pre
pare for the county’s future.
Members of Brunswick County ’s Long-Range
Planning Oversight Committee remain critical of
how they say county administration has failed to
tackle a list of 16 planning recommendations
they forwarded to commissioners in February.
They released an updated list last week that
outlines county activity since July 1 on the 16
goals. They want county staffs and various com
mittees to request the funds they may need to
carry-out the goals in budget preparations which
begin in February.
But some committees haven’t even been
appointed. And some departments are without
managers. County manager Jim Varner said he
supports the goals and has worked to implement
them as he has been directed by county commis
sioners, which last year appointed the long-range
committee. It is a panel that has become increas
ingly outspoken on county government issues.
“The only thing that has been actually started
is with our economic development commission,
county commissioners and the schools,” said
committee member Rosetta Short of Long
Beach. “What’s happened to our administration
helping us? We’re right back to where we start
ed.”
Glenn Harbeck, a consultant hired to work
with the long-range committee, said there are
many items that may not require county funds,
just work on the part of various committees.
“They cost time,” said Harbeck. “1 think
they’ll be bringing recommendations forward to
commissioners where there will be money
involved. It would be nice if these committees,
between now and February, could come together
and begin making recommendations. The timing
could be great, but three months is not an enor
See Planning, page 7
New bank is state’s largest
UCB sold; changes to come
Southern National Corporation
and United Carolina Banesbares
.Corporation have announced the
signing of a merger agreement that
will create the largest bank in the
Caroiinas and the 30th largest bank
holding company in the nation.
■ The merger between the Winston
Salem-based Southern National and
the Whiteville-based UCB will
form a financial institution with
more than $25 billion in assets, the
'■largest share of deposits in North
Carolina, at approximately 20 per
cent; and the third largest share of
deposits to South Carolina, at U
J»rceitt. UCB's banking sub
sidiaries, United Carolina Bank and
United Carolina Bank of South
Carolina, will merge into Branch
Banking and Trust Company
(BB&T) and Branch Banking and
Trust Company of South Carolina,
respectively, the principal banking
subsidiaries of Southern National.
"Southern National’s announced
acquisition strategy is to pursue
vefy high-quality banks and thrifts
m our current markets with the ulti
mate goal of improving our finan
ciaJ performance and fundamental
franchise value,* said Southern
National chairman and chief execu
tive officer John A. AIJisou.
“We could not be more pleased
with die prospects of this merger
with UCB, which meets these
objectives. This in-market merger
significantly strengthens our base
of business in North Carolina and
South Carolina. Both institutions
have solid capital positions, excel
lent credit quality, strong branch
office networks as well as very
compatible corporate culture#,**
•tH r- er . . - -
Allison said. “Considering the
well-recognized benefits and poten
tial cost savings inherent in an in
market merger, this transaction
enables us to grow our franchise
value and improve upon our strong
efficiencies and momentum in sott
ing fee-based products and ser
vices.*
The merger, unanimously
approved by the boards of directors
of both companies, will be account
ed for as a pooling of interests in
which UCB shareholders will
See New bank, page 6